Culture & Lifestyle

No, blacks and Asians do not resent ‘the achievements of the West.’ We made them possible.

University of Pennsylvania law professor Amy Wax made headlines and caused outrage recently because claims that blacks and Asians resent “The Outstanding Achievements of Western Peoples” on Tucker Carlson’s Fox Nation. Wax, who has a history of racist remarks, tell Carlson She argues that “there is only innumerable indignation and shame of non-Western peoples against Western peoples for the outstanding achievements and contributions of Western peoples.”

Citing instances of people of color calling racism, as she did, is not proof that we resent “Western achievement” but that there is systemic inequality in the United States

What we resent is not being recognized for our contributions to these achievements, people telling us how we feel and an unequal system that continues to exploit and exclude us .

While Wax is entitled to its opinion, at a time when racial tensions are high and racist attacks have increaseHer rhetoric is irresponsible, questionable and at its core, very inaccurate indeed.

Blacks and Asians do not resent Western achievements. Why do we resent something to which we have contributed significantly?

Historically, the United States relied heavily on the labor of people of color and immigrants for its economy. Enslaved blacks were responsible for the growth of the American economy in the 19th century. Slavery was called economic locomotive of the Southat a time is source of the majority Cotton is used in Great Britain, France and Russia. At the beginning of the Civil War, the South profited from the labor of enslaved Negroes.

Around the same time as the war, in the early to mid-1860s, the Central Pacific Railway was recruit Chinese workers work on the country’s first transcontinental railroad after not enough white workers responded to their advertisements. Working in extremely dangerous and exhausting work while being paid less than their white counterparts, an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 Chinese migrants are essential to what is described as “”one of the most ambitious American engineering enterprises at the time”- despite the lack of recognition they receive even to this day.

Today, Blacks and Asians—whether American-born, immigrant or non-immigrant—remain behind some of America’s greatest achievements in technology, business, sports, and entertainment.

The man behind Zoom, the video conferencing platform most of us depend on to work from home during the pandemic, is Eric Yuanan Asian man who immigrated to the US from China in 1997. Baiju Bhattan Indian-American businessman who is one of the co-founders and creative director of Robinhood, the commission-free trading app that makes investing and trading in stocks and financial assets other more accessible to the public and has been appreciated 32 billion dollars. As its name suggests, Beats by Dr. Dre, Apple acquired in 2014 for a record $3 billion and is one of the most recognizable headphone brands on the market, created by Dr. Dre – a black American rapper, producer and businessman from Compton, California – with business partner Jimmy Iovine.

Many other such examples exist of Asian-Americans who “drive innovation in Silicon Valley,” according to one 2016 Nikkei Asia article – and black Americans, who succeeded though lack of support from investors in Silicon Valley.

Today, blacks and Asians — whether American-born, immigrant or non-immigrant — are still behind some of America’s greatest achievements.

One of the best examples of innovation in business in recent years is the Fenty brand collection created by Rihanna, of Barbados. Brands has a total value of many billion dollars.

Contrary to Wax’s view of people coming to America and pointing to problems with the country as a form of expression of grievances, Rihanna has identified problems in the fashion and beauty industry and built a billion-dollar businesses revolve around solving these problems.

The mogul’s first brand, Fenty Beauty, was one of the first to offer a range of shades – launching at 40 and now up to 50 – for foundation and concealer products. Although not the first, like some competitors have shownIt was Rihanna herself and the way consumers who despised tradition responded to Fenty Beauty that made the beauty industry work harder to make more products for a wider audience.

The same is true of Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty underwear brands includewhich offers lingerie, underwear, and sunglasses for people of all shapes and sizes.

Looking at the sports arena, we see a lot of black and Asian people winning medals and breaking records for the United States Most recently, Nathan Chen wins gold At the Beijing Olympics, he became the first Asian-American to win a medal in men’s singles figure skating. Last year, at the Tokyo Olympics, the American Hmong Suni Lee won goldin the women’s individual all-around gymnastics final, making her the first Asian-American woman to win a gold medal in the competition. Her teammate at the Olympics was of course Olympic champion Simone Biles, The most decorated gymnast in World Championship history.

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In the entertainment sector, more and more creators of color are starting their own production companies and creating stories like never before to capture the world. Perhaps the most famous of these creators is Shonda Rhimes, whose production company Shondaland has produced some of the most beloved and smitten shows, from “Grey’s Anatomy” to “Bridgerton.” Part two of “Bridgerton”, which is release in March, breaking Netflix’s streaming record for the most watched English-language TV series. For seven days after its release, the Shondaland Regency era drama was watched for 251.7 million hours and is in the top 10 most popular shows and movies on Netflix in 93 countries.

Rhimes, a Black creator, often approaches her performances with diverse selections and other forms of inclusion that have proven to be successful not only in the United States but globally. This is another example, like Rihanna’s Fenty brand, of how addressing the problem with the status quo and achieving great achievements in their respective industries are not mutually exclusive.

In this day and age, when the global community is interconnected and collaborates continuously, the term “Western achievement” feels outdated. The East-West divide that Wax’s rhetoric maintains is unnecessary and dangerous, as it can incorrectly enforce stereotypes about differences and fan xenophobic fires. First, the people the professor has repeatedly pointed to in her anecdotal examples – black and Asian Americans and immigrants – are part of Western and American society. More importantly, however, the division does not take into account the many achievements that have been achieved when people from different countries and cultures work together as one.

When it comes to achievement, what people of color really want is equal opportunity and proper recognition. No, people of color or non-Westerners do not resent the achievements of the West. What we resent is not being recognized for our contributions to these achievements, people telling us how we feel and an unequal system that continues to exploit and exclude us .

You are reading the article No, blacks and Asians do not resent ‘the achievements of the West.’ We made them possible.

at Blogtuan.info – Source: nbcnews.com – Read the original article here

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